£7bn a year of free babysitting services

It was reported today by the Daily Mail that babysitting grandparents are effectively saving families some £7bn per year.

Now just before my children start to worry that I am after them for a hand out of cash, don’t worry I am not.

It does however tell us something about the cost of children and grandchildren.

Of course we love them to bits but they are potentially very expensive.

Feeding them, clothing them and educating them costs a small fortune and the article quoted claims that grandparents baby sit for up to 20 hours per week and save some £8,600 per year for those families.

Setting aside some money for our grandchildren’s future sounds like a fine idea.

If they have a Child Trust Fund or indeed a junior ISA it is a real delight to help them build some capital for their future perhaps to go towards the cost of higher education such as University fees or even the deposit on a house in the future.

Aside from the financial aspect of having grandchildren the most important thing from my perspective is the fun and joy they bring into our lives.

Having children around at my age is the perfect excuse for behaving like a kid myself!